Umeå Economic Studies,
Umeå University, Department of Economics

Abstract: This thesis consists of three papers studying the economic situation of immigrants in Sweden in terms of wage earnings, labor participation and family internal migration.

Paper [I] studies the determinants of the wage earnings for immigrants from different countries, and secondly whether their wage earnings converge to those of comparable native-born Swedes. The study is based on a longitudinal dataset, and the data refers to 1991 and 1995, respectively. The empirical results indicate that immigrants in Sweden are heterogeneous, and different income determinants, such as education, cohort-specific factors and time of residence, affect different groups of immigrants in different ways. Even after 20 years of residence, almost none of the groups appear to reach the same level of earnings as natives. In particular, the earnings of immigrants from typical refugee-sending countries tend to be much lower.

Paper [II] examines whether the transition probability from employment to non-employment among married immigrant women is consistent with the Family Investment Hypothesis (FIH). A dynamic random effects model is used and the estimations are based on a longitudinal database covering the period 1990-1996. The results indicate that the relationship between the transition probability from employment to non-employment and the family’s time of residence in Sweden, considered here as an indication of the husband’s need for host country-specific human capital, does not seem to be consistent with the interpretation of the FIH. Further, when immigrant women married to native-born Swedes are used as a comparison group, the corresponding relationship is similar despite the fact that this group should not need to apply family investment strategy.

Paper [III] uses a longitudinal dataset from the years 1995 and 2000, respectively, this study examines whether migration within the host country of Sweden generates higher total annual income for (two-earner) immigrant families. The empirical findings indicate that internal migration generates a positive outcome in terms of higher family income for newly arrived refugee-immigrant families. Further, with the length of residence in the host country, the monetary gain accruing from internal migration decreases. On the other hand, I could not find similar results for immigrant families from the Nordic countries, Europe and Asia.

Keywords: Immigrant; wage earnings; labor participation; family income; family investments; internal migration; immigrant women; family migration

JEL-codes: C23; H31; J61; R23

30 pages, February 29, 2004

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